Demititan
by arKlight.RevIsion
Summary: It's An OC x Bianca di Angelo! What do you think? Anyway, sumary: What if Bianca never joined the hunters? What if she fell in love with an OC?
1. Chapter 1

**This just popped into my head. I don't know why! :p**

Jayson Kane's POV

Let me tell you, being a demigod is never easy. If I had a choice, I would rather have a normal life-watching television the entire day, hanging out with my friends, you know, living a normal life. But now, I guess all of that will just be a dream, a wish that I could never have.

It all began when I started to go to a new school called Westover Hall. It was like a military school, where you have to wear very uncomfortable, restricting uniforms, perform drills every single morning, and basically not have any fun the entire year. The teachers were a pain; they loved making us do tons of homework every night, and, just for fun, makes us do push-ups whenever we get an answer wrong in class. The only bright side to all of that was that I during first semester here, I met Bianca di Angelo. She was a girl whom I just can't get my mind off. She was very beautiful, although she keeps denying it every time I tell her. She was petite, had dark, silky hair, olive skin, and was a bit shy, but nice to everyone around her. She was also very responsible, seeing as how she takes care of that annoying little brat she call a brother. The moment we saw each other, I knew that we would be the closest of friends. And I was right. We knew everything about each other- she even knows me better that myself. No secrets were kept between us. Also, I learned that we had a lot in common. Both of our fathers had gone missing the day we were born. Our mothers practically gave us away, since we didn't even know what their names were. We both loved Greek mythology, especially the gods. We even have the same taste in ice cream. Anyway, it was the day before a dance that our school "provided." I was half-believing that this was just another scheme by Dr. Thorn, who was probably the scariest teacher that ever lived, to have an excuse to punish us severely for the rest of the semester.

"Kane!" I heard Dr. Thorn shout. "Over here."

I scrambled to get to him. If I didn't, he would just make me do push-ups with my knuckles until they bleed.

"Yes, sir." I tried to hide my annoyance, but it didn't work.

"Come with me."

We went to his office. Few students have ever been in there, and most that went in mysteriously disappeared after a few days. The good thing is, I wasn't alone. Two other people were also inside, sitting on a leather sofa, their heads bowed down. Nico and Bianca di Angelo.

I sat beside Bianca. I was a little relived to see her here, but a little worried too. Nobody was ever called in here that didn't break the rules. I guess Thorn finally learned that I was the one who broke his office's stained glass window.

"Hi Bianca." I whispered.

"Hey Jay." Her head still hung low, as if she was scared at looking at Thorn.

"What brought you here?" I asked, worried about her.

She leaned closer so that Thorn wouldn't hear us. Anyway, he was busy writing some stuff that I didn't care about, so hearing us would be impossible. "Nico called him some stuff that I don't want to repeat."

I chuckled. "Bianca, that kid is gonna be the end of you, I swear."

She punched me lightly on the arm. "Nico might hear you."

Unfortunately, Nico heard me. "What? He was shouting at Bianca, and I know how much you care about your girlfriend, Jay."

"Shut up." I said through gritted teeth.

He shrugged. "You're worse than Bianca."

Thorn finished what he was writing. He looked up at us. "You three know why you're here?"

We shook our heads.

He stood up. He paced around the room, thinking. Finally, he stopped in front of us after about a minute. You are… how am I going to put this? You three are going to be recruited."

They looked at him in disbelief. I, on the other hand, only got enraged. "What do you mean, we are gonna be recruited? Nico's 10! Bianca's 12! I'm just 13! Who in god's name would want to recruit us?"

He glared at me, as though he wants to kill me on the spot. "Tomorrow, children. After the party. Wait for me in the bleachers. Now GET OUT!"

And he literally threw us out of his office.

_The Next Night…_

I looked at myself in the mirror. In my dark jeans and blue green shirt, I thought I looked awesome.

As I entered the gym, what I saw completely overwhelmed me. The entire gym was covered in crepe paper streamers, balloons, and banners that said, "have a great party!"

I immediately went to find Bianca. I dodged a pack of girls by hiding behind the bleachers, which I learned later was probably the best thing I did. The guy behind me was given a complete makeover. He had pink and yellow ribbons in his hair, lipstick on his face, and eyeliner applied so thick that it made him look emo.

I saw her sitting with Nico in the bleachers, away from the party. She wore a floppy green cap, like she was trying to hide her face, and Nico was holding a pack of cards, showing it to her sister like she was interested.

I dodged a balloon that was aimed at my face, probably from some guy who was bored out of his mind. As I went nearer, I noticed that Bianca and Nico were in the middle of an argument.

"-great, Bianca! We get to join the army!" said Nico.

"What's great about that? Think, Nico! We're just kids! Who would want to recruit us?" then she saw ma. "Tell him, Jay!"

"She's right, Nico." I said, not wanting to get on Bianca's bad side.

He sighed. "Of course she is. You would never go against your girlfriend."

I was really getting irritated with this kid. "She's not my girlfriend, you annoying-"

"Stop it. Both of you." Bianca huffed.

We fell silent. Then, I noticed something unusual. A kid who enrolled here just last month kept glancing at us, as though he were afraid that we would disappear or something . And he was not alone. Three people who I had never seen before, were talking to him. A boy, and two girls. The boy had sea green eyes and black hair, one of the girls had gray eyes and blonde hair, and the other girl had electric blue eyes and black hair just like the boy's. But the weird thing was, anyone who they encountered acted like they've been here their entire lives.

I leaned over to Bianca and asked, pointing to them, "Bianca, do you know those people?"

She shook her head. "No, I've never seen them before."

Just then, Dr. Thorn came to us. Grabbed all three of us by the scruff of our necks, and steered us outside.

"Halt," Thorn said. We stopped. There, we saw the boy with the sea green eyes from the dance standing in front of us, carrying a bronze sword. "Let them go!" he demanded.

Then, as fast as lightning, Dr. Thorn had him pinned to the wall by his coat and shirt by some kind of spike—a black dagger-like projectile about a foot long. It had grazed the skin of his shoulder and it passed through his clothes. It must've hurt.

A dark silhouette now moved toward him. Dr. Thorn stepped into the dim light. He still looked human, but his face was ghoulish. The boy tried to swing his sword again, but Dr. Thorn was just out of reach.

WHIIIISH! A second projectile shot from somewhere behind Dr. Thorn, but he didn't even move. It was as if someone invisible were standing behind him, throwing spikes.

Next to me, Bianca yelped. The second thorn impaled itself in the stone wall, half an inch from the boy's face.

"All three of you will come with me," Dr. Thorn said. "Quietly. Obediently. If you make a single noise, if you call out for help or try to fight, I will show you just how accurately I can throw."

He made us walk outside.

Then the boy closed his eyes.

"What are you doing, Jackson?" hissed Dr. Thorn. "Keep moving!"

It's my shoulder," he said, sounding miserable, but I could tell he was lying. "It burns."

"Bah! My poison causes pain. It will not kill you. Walk!"

Thorn inarched us into the woods. We took a snowy path dimly lit by old-fashioned lamplights. The boy winced. I could tell he was in no position to fight.

Dr. Thorn pushed us toward the edge. I stumbled, but Bianca caught me.

"Thanks," I murmured.

"What is he?" she whispered to the boy. "How do we fight him?"

"I… I'm working on it." The boy said.

"I'm scared," Nico mumbled. He was fiddling with something—a little metal toy soldier that was part of his game.

"Stop talking!" Dr. Thorn said. "Face me!"

We all turned.

Thorn's two-tone eyes glittered hungrily. He pulled something from under his coat. At first I thought it was a knife and he was going to kill us, but it was only a phone. He pressed the side button and said, "The package—it is ready to deliver."

There was a garbled reply, and I realized Thorn was using a walkie-talkie, not a phone.

I glanced behind me. There was no way for us to run, since the only behind us down.

The boy looked behind him, as though he was thinking the same thing.

Dr. Thorn laughed. "By all means, Son of Poseidon. Jump! There is the sea. Save yourself."

"What did he call you?" Bianca muttered.

"I'll explain later," he said.

"You do have a plan, right?" I asked.

"If we survive the fall, I could use the water to protect us. I'd done things like that before. If my dad was in a good mood, and listening, he might help. Maybe." He said.

"I would kill you before you ever reached the water," Dr. Thorn said, and launched another spike that missed my head by an inch.

"You do not realize who I am, do you?"

A flicker of movement behind him, and another missile whistled so close to the boy that it nicked his ear. Something had sprung up behind Dr. Thorn—like a catapult, but more flexible… almost like a tail.

"Unfortunately," Thorn said, "you are wanted alive, if possible. Otherwise you would already be dead." Then he looked at me. "As for you, I have strict orders not to bring you harm, little boy."

"Who wants us?" Bianca demanded. "Because if you think you'll get us to come with you, you're wrong. We don't have any family but each other." She looked at me, and that's when I realized that we were already holding hands.

"Aww," Dr. Thorn said. "Do not worry, little brats. You will be meeting my employer soon enough. Then you will have a brand-new family."

"Luke," the boy said. "You work for Luke."

"You have no idea what is happening, Perseus Jackson. I will let the General enlighten you. You are going to do him a great service tonight. He is looking forward to meeting you."

"The General?" the boy, who I guess is Percy, asked. Then I realized he'd said it with a French accent. "I mean… who's the General?"

Thorn looked toward the horizon. "Ah, here we are. Your transportation."

We turned and saw a light in the distance, like a searchlight over the sea. Then I heard the chopping of helicopter blades getting louder and closer.

"Where are you taking us?" Nico said.

"You should be honored, my boy. You will have the opportunity to join a great army! Just like that silly game you play with cards and dolls."

"They're not dolls! They're figurines! And you can take your great army and—"

"Shove it up your ass." I finished for him.

"Now, now," Dr. Thorn warned. "You will change your mind about joining us, my boy. And if you do not, well… there are other uses for half-bloods. We have many monstrous mouths to feed. The Great Stirring is underway."

"The Great what?" I asked. Anything to keep him talking while Percy tried to figure out a plan.

"The stirring of monsters." Dr. Thorn smiled evilly. "The worst of them, the most powerful, are now waking. Monsters that have not been seen in thousands of years. They will cause death and destruction the likes of which mortals have never known. And soon we shall have the most important monster of all—the one that shall bring about the downfall of Olympus!"

"Okay," Bianca whispered to me. "He's completely nuts."

"We have to jump off the cliff," Percy told us quietly. "Into the sea."

"Oh, super idea. You're completely nuts, too."

Percy never got the chance to argue with her, because just then an invisible force knocked him down.

Then, all hell broke loose.

The girl with black hair and punk style appeared before us, and tapped her bracelet, which transformed into a shield with the head of medusa in the middle. What was it called? Aegis, I think.

Even Dr. Thorn winced and growled when he saw it.

The girl moved in with her spear, which I swear was a mace can just moments ago. "For Zeus!"

I thought Dr. Thorn was a dead man. The girl jabbed at his head, but he snarled and swatted the spear aside.

His hand changed into an orange paw, with enormous claws that sparked against the girl's shield as he slashed. If it hadn't been for Aegis, the girl would've been sliced like a loaf of bread. As it was, she managed to roll backward and land on her feet.

The sound of the helicopter was getting louder behind us, but I didn't dare look. I was too paralyzed with fear.

Dr. Thorn launched another volley of missiles at Percy, and this time I could see how he did it. He had a tail—a leathery, scorpionlike tail that bristled with spikes at the tip.

The girl ran to him and deflected the missiles off with Aegis, but the force of the impact knocked them both down.

The kid with crutchessuddenly sprang forward. He put some kind of flute- a reed pipe, I think, to his lips and began to play—a frantic jig that sounded like something pirates would dance to. Grass broke through the snow. Within seconds, rope-thick weeds were wrapping around Dr. Thorn's legs, entangling him.

Dr. Thorn roared and began to change. He grew larger until he was in his true form—his face still human, but his body that of a huge lion. His leathery, spiky tail whipped deadly thorns in all directions.

"A manticore!" the girl with blonde hair said, now visible. A New York Yankees cap fall to the ground.

"Who are you people?" Bianca demanded. "And what is that?"

"Annabeth just told you, it's a manticore." Percy grumbled.

"A manticore?" Nico gasped. "He's got three thousand attack power and plus five to saving throws!"

"Shut up, Nico!" I shouted.

Nico narrowed his eyes, but he was too embarrassed to give a proper glare.

"Get down!" The girl, who I guessed was Annabeth, pushed the di Angelos flat into the snow. At the last second, I remembered to duck. Five spikes sailed past my head.

I heard a thwack and a yelp, and Percy landed next to me with a thud.

"Yield!" the monster roared.

"Never!" Thalia yelled from across the field. She charged the monster, and for a second, I thought she would run him through. But then there was a thunderous noise and a blaze of light from behind us. The helicopter appeared out of the mist, hovering just beyond the cliffs. It was a sleek black military-style gunship, with attachments on the sides that looked like laser-guided rockets.

The searchlights blinded Thalia, and the manticore swatted her away with its tail. Her shield flew off into the snow. Her spear flew in the other direction. Then, the manticore turned to Bianca, and launched spikes that would impale her on her chest.

"No!" I ran out to help her. I moved in front of her, protecting her from all the spikes. Searing pain erupted in my gut, and I guessed that that was where the spike hit me.

"Jayson!" Bianca yelled, and ran over to help me.

Dr. Thorn laughed. "Now do you see how hopeless it is? Yield, little heroes."

We were trapped between a monster and a fully armed helicopter. We had no chance.

Then, before I passed out, I heard a clear, piercing sound: the call of a hunting horn blowing in the woods.

Bianca's POV

Jayson. He took those spokes for me. Why?

The manticore froze. For a moment, no one moved. There was only the swirl of snow and wind and the chopping of the helicopter blades.

"No," Dr. Thorn said. "It cannot be—"

His sentence was cut short when something pierced him. A glowing silver arrow sprouted from Dr. Thorn's shoulder.

He staggered backward, wailing in agony.

"Curse you!" Thorn cried. He unleashed his spikes, dozens of them at once, into the woods where the arrow had come from, but just as fast, silvery arrows shot back in reply. It almost looked like the arrows had intercepted the thorns in midair and sliced them in two.

The manticore pulled the arrow out of his shoulder with a howl of pain. His breathing was heavy. I tried to swipe at him with my sword, but he wasn't as injured as he looked. He dodged my attack and slammed his tail into my shield, knocking me aside.

Then the archers came from the woods. They were girls, about a dozen of them. The oldest, about fourteen, and the youngest, twelve, like me.

They wore silvery ski parkas and jeans, and they were all armed with bows. They advanced on the manticore with determined expressions.

"The Hunters!" Annabeth cried.

One of the older archers stepped forward with her bow drawn. She was tall and graceful with coppery colored skin. Unlike the other girls, she had a silver circlet braided into the top of her long dark hair, so she looked like some kind of Persian princess.

"Permission to kill, my lady?" she asked.

The monster wailed. "This is not fair! Direct interference! It is against the Ancient Laws."

"Not so," another girl said. This one was a little younger than me, maybe twelve or thirteen. She had auburn hair gathered back in a ponytail and strange eyes, silvery yellow like the moon. Her expression was stern and dangerous.

"The hunting of all wild beasts is within my sphere. And you, foul creature, are a wild beast." She looked at the older girl with the circlet. "Zoe, permission granted."

The manticore growled. "If I cannot have these alive, I shall have them dead!"

He lunged at me, knowing we were weak and dazed.

"No.'" Annabeth yelled, and she charged at the monster.

"Get back, half-blood!" the girl with the circlet said. "Get out of the line of fire!"

But Annabeth leaped onto the monster's back and drove her knife into his mane. The manticore howled, turning in circles with his tail flailing as Annabeth hung on for dear life.

"Fire!" Zoe ordered.

"No!" I screamed.

But the Hunters let their arrows fly. The first caught the manticore in the neck. Another hit his chest. The manticore staggered backward, wailing, "This is not the end, Huntress! You shall pay!"

And before anyone could react, the monster, with Annabeth still on his back, leaped over the cliff and tumbled into the darkness.

I couldn't believe my eyes. Annabeth had just sacrificed herself to save us.

The Hunters advanced on us.

The one called Zoe stopped short when she saw Thalia. "You," she said with distaste, or possibly disgust, eminent in her voice

"Zoe Nightshade." Thalia's voice trembled with anger. "Perfect timing, as usual."

Zoe scanned the rest of us. "Five half-bloods and a satyr, my lady."

"Yes," theauburn-haired girl said. "Some of Chiron's campers, I see."

I tried to struggle to my feet, my knees wobbled and I fell down. Good thing Thalia caught me before I fell.

"Whoa, easy there.," she said.

I shook her off. "Jayson! You have to help him!"

The auburn-haired girl thought for a moment, before waving her hand. The spikes that hit Jayson suddenly disappeared, and his wounds started to heal.

Thalia glared at them. "I thought you hated men. Why would you do that yourself?"

I was thinking, _I don't care, as long as he's safe_.

"He has a good heart. And he is not like any man I've ever met before. Brave, and selfless."

"Hey!" said Percy.

I stepped forward. "Thanks for saving him. Who are you?"

The auburn haired girl looked at me right in the eyes. Then I knew the answer, even before she told me.

"I am Artemis. Goddess of the hunt."

**If you've ever read the Kane Chronicles( which is a really good book by the way), then here's a bit of a spoiler for Jayson for future chapters to come! XD**

**Jayson is a magician.**

**He has Blood of the Pharaohs.**

**He was separated from his siblings at birth.**

**His Surname is Kane, so if you read the books you will know who are his siblings(or half-siblings)…LOL!**

**The Title of this story is Demititan…so…guess!**

**Anyways….**_**READ AND REVIEW!**_


	2. Chapter 2

**Thanks to those who reviewed!**

Chapter 2

Jayson's POV

I woke up seeing horns.

"Oh shit!" I screamed. I tried to get up, maybe run away from whatever it was, but my head suddenly felt like it just went through a blender. I started to fall, but the person, if you can call him a person, caught me just as I was to fall face first on the floor.

"Whoa, easy there. You took a real beating from that manticore." He gave me piece of square bread, and something that looked like apple juice. "Here, eat these. It'll help you get better."

I had no problem with apple juice, so I took it and drank. Suddenly, my head felt a lot better. It felt like I could lift a hundred pounds and not break a sweat. But the funny thing was, it didn't taste like apple juice. It strangely tasted like skittles. Before I knew it, I finished the whole drink.

"Can I have some more?" I asked. The boy shook his head. "No, you could literally burn up."

I looked at him in confusion. _Burn up? What's he talking about? Is he crazy? _I asked myself.

I looked at him for some answers, and I noticed that instead of legs, he had goat's hooves. I almost passed out again due to shock, but willed myself not to. I looked around, and for the first time, I noticed that we were in a tent.

"Who-who are you? Where are we?" I asked.

The boy shifted nervously. "I'm Grover Underwood, protector. And we are in the Hunters' camp, just outside of your school."

I looked at him like he fell from the sky. "Grover? As in the grunt, Grover?"

"Please, don't remind me."

"But you have hooves." I said.

"That's 'cause I'm a satyr. And you my young friend, are a half-blood."

"What's a half-blood?"

He snickered. Apparently, many people ask him this question. "Half-blood. Meaning half-mortal, half-god."

"That's crazy!" I snapped. "there are no gods!"

"That's what Bianca just said."

That's when I was fully awakened. "Bianca? Is she alright? Where is she?"

Grover stood up. "Follow me."

I stood up and followed him to tent bigger than the others. Inside, Percy, Thalia, Nico and Bianca were sitting, drinking the apple juice drink that I just had, and with them were the auburn-haired girl that saved our lives, along with another girl who had braided dark hair that reached her waist, a face that looked like a Persian Princess's, and as silver circlet braided on her hair. She seemed to be glaring at Percy intently, is if he would suddenly get up and rape her. Then, when she noticed me, she gave me that glare too.

"Zoe," the auburn-haired girl said, breaking the silence. "calm yourself."

"I'm sorry, milady." Zoe said. "It's just-"

The auburn-haired girl cut her off. "I know. And I am giving these men special permission to enter our camp. Do you not trust my judgement?"

" Of course I do, Lady Artemis. But-"

"You're Artemis?" I suddenly blurted out. ADHD can sometimes make you do that.

Zoe stood up. "Why you little-"

"Stop." Artemis commanded. She motioned for Zoe to sit down, and continued. "Since you are all here, I may begin my business with all of you, starting with you Bianca. You are a brave, responsible girl, just what we need for the Hunters. Would you like the honor of joining us?" she asked.

"I-I-" Bianca stuttered.

I looked at her desperately. Would she leave us for the hunters? I learned about them in our Greek mythology classes. They live forever, they never get sick, or die, unless they were killed in battle, or they break their vow to never love again.

To my surprise, Bianca looked at me, than at Artemis, and said, "Would you excuse me a minute?" then she took my hand and dragged me outside. Before I got out, I swear I heard Artemis sigh.

Once we were out of hearing range, Bianca let go of my hand. She began to pace back and forth, with me just standing there like an idiot.

Finally, she spoke up. "What do you think?"

"Um-what?"

She sighed. "The hunters, stupid. Do you think I should join?"

"Oh." I don't know what else to say. I don't want Bianca to leave, but it might not be her decision. "Maybe… you shouldn't."

She crossed her arms. "Why not?"

"Because…" I scratched the back of my head. "…then Nico and I would be alone."

She raised an eyebrow. "That's all?"

"…"

"Thought so." With that, she left to go back to Artemis. Why couldn't I just tell her the truth?

I ran back to Artemis's tent. To my surprise, everyone was still there, even Bianca.

"Did she do it?" I asked Percy.

"No. Wouldn't tell us why." He still sounded miserable. I guess losing his best friend really took a toll on him.

I left them with a smile on my face, went back to the tent where I woke up, and slept peacefully.

The next morning, Zoe woke me up early. "Get up." She said coldly.

I groaned. "Five more minutes."

"Five more minutes and you would be here, alone." She snapped. Then, she splashed a bucket ice water onto my face.

That woke me up. "What the hell?"

"Get up and let's go." She repeated. I was really getting annoyed with her.

Outside, it seemed like it was still dark. I had no idea why Zoe would wake us up while it's still dark out, but I guess she had her reasons.

"We're waiting for Apollo." She said to me as a matter-of-factly.

"Apollo? Artemis's older brother?" I asked.

"He is not older than me!" Artemis snapped, suddenly appearing behind me. "We're twins! Ever since he let that rumor spread just to annoy me…Argh!"

"Okay." I said sheepishly.

We waited. After about fifteen minutes, the sun's rays broke through the darkness. "Apollo's here." Artemis said.

"Don't look," Artemis advised. "Not until he parks."

"Parks?" I asked, curious.

Percy averted my eyes, and I saw that the other kids were doing the same. I averted my eyes, just in time to see a bright light through closed eyelids. The light and warmth intensified until I felt the snow melting off of me. Then suddenly the light died.

I looked. And I couldn't believe it. It was my car. I looked at Percy, and I could tell he was thinking the exact same thing. Weird.

It was so awesome it glowed. Then I realized it was glowing because the metal was hot like the sun. It was sun-red in color and even the windshield and windows were made of fire.

Then the driver, who I guessed was Apollo, got out, smiling. He looked about seventeen or eighteen, and he was pretty cool. That is, until I saw Artemis glaring at him with fiery passion. He wore jeans and loafers and a sleeveless T-shirt, and anyone looking at him could easily mistake him for a model or something.

"Wow," Thalia muttered behind me. "Apollo is hot."

"He's the sun god," Percy said. Wow, was he slow.

Thalia rolled her eyes. "That's not what I meant."

"Little sister!" Apollo called. "What's up? You never call. You never write. I was getting worried!"

Artemis glared at me, then sighed. "I'm fine, Apollo. And I am not your little sister."

"Hey, I was born first."

"We're twins! How many millennia do we have to argue—"

"So what's up?" he interrupted. "Got the girls with you, I see. You all need some tips on archery?"

Artemis gritted her teeth. "I need a favor. I have some hunting to do, alone. I need you to take my companions to Camp Half-Blood."

"Sure, sis!" Then he raised his hands in a stop everything gesture. "I feel a haiku coming on."

The Hunters all groaned. Artemis sighed, and proceeded to cover her ears with her hands. IF a god would do that just to avoid a haiku, how bad can it be?

He cleared his throat and held up one hand dramatically.

"Green grass breaks through snow.

Artemis pleads for my help.

I am so cool."

He grinned at us, waiting for applause.

"That wasn't half-bad." I muttered.

Apollo smiled. "Thanks kid!"

I nodded. "I aim to please."

Bianca laughed a little.

"That last line was only four syllables," Artemis said.

Apollo frowned. "Was it?"

"Yes. What about I am so big-headed?"

"Why doesn't he try I am so lame with haiku?" Thalia whispered to me. I snickered.

"No, no, that's seven syllables. Hmm." He started muttering to himself.

Zoe turned to us. "Lord Apollo has been going through this haiku phase ever since he visited Japan. 'Tis not as bad as the time he visited Limerick. If I'd had to hear one more poem that started with, There once was a goddess from Sparta—"

"I've got it!" Apollo announced. "I am so awesome. That's five syllables!" He bowed, looking very pleased with himself.

"Not really." Artemis huffed.

"And now, sis. Transportation for the Hunters, you say? Good timing. I was just about ready to roll."

"These demigods will also need a ride," Artemis said, pointing to us. "Some of Chiron's campers."

"No problem!" Apollo checked us out. "Let's see… Thalia, right? I've heard all about you."

Thalia blushed.

"Hi, Lord Apollo." She said, still blushing.

"Zeus's girl, yes? Makes you my half sister. Used to be a tree, didn't you? Glad you're back. I hate it when pretty girls turn into trees. Man, I remember one time—"

"Brother," Artemis said. "You should get going."

"Oh, right." He looked at Percy, and his eyes narrowed. "Percy Jackson?"

"Yeah. I mean… yes, sir." He said.

"Good." The he looked at me. His eyes narrowed, and he motioned for Artemis to come closer. "Artemis, we need to talk."

They left us to go to a secluded part of the woods. When they came back, Artemis had a smile on her face, and Apollo just frowned.

He studied me, but he didn't say anything, which wasa little creepy.

"Well!" he said covering his frown with a smile. "We'd better load up, huh? Ride only goes one way—west. And if you miss it, you miss it."

I looked at the Maserati again. There were about twenty of us. How would we all fit?

"Cool car," Nico said.

"Thanks, kid," Apollo said.

"But how will we all fit?"

"Oh." Apollo seemed to notice the problem for the first time. "Well, yeah. I hate to change out of sports-car mode, but I suppose…"

He took out his car keys and beeped the security alarm button. Chirp, chirp.

For a moment, the car glowed brightly again. When the glare died, the Maserati had been replaced by one of those Turtle Top shuttle buses. It was pretty cool, but not as cool as the car.

"Right," he grumbled. "Everybody in." I could tell that he was still annoyed that he has to change his car.

Zoe ordered the Hunters to start loading. She picked up her camping pack, and Apollo said, "Here, sweetheart. Let me get that."

Zoe recoiled. Her eyes flashed at him murderously.

"Brother," Artemis chided. "You do not help my Hunters. You do not look at, talk to, or flirt with my Hunters. And you do not call them sweetheart."

Apollo spread his hands. "Sorry. I forgot. Hey, sis, where are you off to, anyway?"

"Hunting," Artemis said. "It's none of your business."

"I'll find out. I see all. Know all."

Artemis snorted. "Just drop them off, Apollo. And no messing around!"

"No, no! I never mess around."

Artemis rolled her eyes, then looked at us. "I will see you by winter solstice. Zoe, you are in charge of the Hunters. Do well. Do as I would do."

Zoe straightened. "Yes, my lady."

Artemis knelt and touched the ground as if looking for tracks. When she rose, she looked troubled. "So much danger. The beast must be found."

She sprinted toward the woods and melted into the snow and shadows.

Apollo turned and grinned, jangling the car keys on his finger. "So," he said. "Who wants to drive?"

The Hunters piled into the van. They all crammed into the back so they'd be as far away as possible from Apollo and the rest of us, but good thing that Bianca sat with us, so this ride wouldn't be that boring, even though we were on the fabled sun chariot of Apollo.

"This is so cool!" Nico said, jumping up and down in the driver's seat. "Is this really the sun? I thought Helios and Selene were the sun and moon gods. How come sometimes it's them and sometimes it's you and Artemis?"

"Downsizing," Apollo said. "The Romans started it. They couldn't afford all those temple sacrifices, so they laid off Helios and Selene and folded their duties into our job descriptions. My sis got the moon. I got the sun. It was pretty annoying at first, but at least I got this cool car."

"Yeah, that and Helios and Selene both weren't man enough to take responsibility of the sun and moon." I added.

Apollo at me murderously. "Listen kid. Whatever you heard, it was all a lie. Helios and Selene did their jobs well for centuries, but since no one worshipped them, they gradually lost power, until they had to give our jobs to us. Now, who are you gonna believe, some foolish airheaded mortal, or me?"

"Um…you?" I said.

"Good."

"So, how does it work?" Nico asked immediately. I was thankful. "I thought the sun was a big fiery ball of gas!"

Apollo chuckled and ruffled Nico's hair. "That rumor probably got started because Artemis used to call me a big fiery ball of gas. Seriously, kid, it depends on whether you're talking astronomy or philosophy. You want to talk astronomy? Bah, what fun is that? You want to talk about how humans think about the sun? Ah, now that's more interesting. They've got a lot riding on the sun… er, so to speak. It keeps them warm, grows their crops, powers engines, makes everything look, well, sunnier. This chariot is built out of human dreams about the sun, kid. It's as old as Western Civilization. Every day, it drives across the sky from east to west, lighting up all those puny little mortal lives. The chariot is a manifestation of the sun's power, the way mortals perceive it. Make sense?"

Nico shook his head. "No."

"Well then, just think of it as a really powerful, really dangerous solar car."

"Can I drive?"

"No. Too young."

"I probably would have done better than Thalia did," Nico grumbled.

"Mm, no," Apollo said. "Too furry." He looked past me and focused on Thalia.

"Daughter of Zeus!" he said. "Lord of the sky. Perfect."

"Oh, no." Thalia shook her head. "No, thanks."

"C'mon," Apollo said. "How old are you?"

Thalia hesitated. "I don't know."

It was sad, but true. She'd been turned into a tree when she was twelve, but that had been seven years ago. So she should be nineteen, if you went by years. But she still felt like she was twelve, and if you looked at her, she seemed somewhere in between. The best Chiron could figure, she had kept aging while in tree form, but much more slowly.

Apollo tapped his finger to his lips. "You're fifteen, almost sixteen."

"How do you know that?"

"Hey, I'm the god of prophecy. I know stuff. You'll turn sixteen in about a week."

"That's my birthday! December twenty-second."

"Which means you're old enough now to drive with a learner's permit!"

Thalia shifted her feet nervously. "Uh—"

"I know what you're going to say," Apollo said. "You don't deserve an honor like driving the sun chariot."

"That's not what I was going to say."

"Don't sweat it! Maine to Long Island is a really short trip, and don't worry about what happened to the last kid I trained. You're Zeus's daughter. He's not going to blast you out of the sky."

Apollo laughed good-naturedly. The rest of us didn't join him.

Thalia tried to protest, but Apollo was absolutely not going to take "no" for an answer. He hit a button on the dashboard, and a sign popped up along the top of the windshield. I had to read it backward (which, for a dyslexic, really isn't that different than reading forward). I was pretty sure it said WARNING: STUDENT DRIVER.

"Take it away!" Apollo told Thalia. "You're gonna be a natural!"

"Speed equals heat," Apollo advised. "So start slowly, and make sure you've got good altitude before you really open her up."

Thalia gripped the wheel so tight her knuckles turned white. She looked like she was going to be sick.

"What's wrong?" Percy asked her.

"Nothing," she said shakily. "N-nothing is wrong."

I leaned over to Percy and whispered, "I think she's afraid of heights."

He looked at me incredulously. "How can she be? She's Zeus's daughter, for crying out loud!"

I shrugged. "I don't know. Just a guess."

She pulled back on the wheel. It tilted, and the bus lurched upward so fast I fell back and crashed against something soft.

"Ow" Grover said.

"Sorry."

"Slower!" Apollo said.

"Sorry!" Thalia said. "I've got it under control!"

Percy and I managed to get to our feet. Looking out the window, I saw a smoking ring of trees from the clearing where we'd taken off.

"Thalia," I said, "take it easy."

"I've got it, Jayson," she said, gritting her teeth. But she kept it floored.

"Loosen up," Percy told her.

"I'm loose!" Thalia said.

"We need to veer south for Long Island," Apollo said. "Hang a left."

Thalia jerked the wheel and again threw me into Grover, who yelped.

"The other left," Apollo suggested.

"Ah…" Apollo said, and I got the feeling he was forcing himself to sound calm. "A little lower, sweetheart. Cape Cod is freezing over."

Thalia tilted the wheel. Her face was chalk white, her forehead beaded with sweat. Something was definitely wrong. I'd never seen her like this.

The bus pitched down and somebody screamed. I think it was Percy.

Now we were heading straight toward the Atlantic Ocean at a thousand miles an hour, the New England coastline off to our right. And it was getting hot in the bus.

Apollo had been thrown somewhere in the back of the bus, but he started climbing up the rows of seats.

"Take the wheel!" Grover begged him.

"No worries," Apollo said. He looked plenty worried. "She just has to learn to—WHOA!"

I saw what he was seeing. Down below us was a little snow-covered New England town. At least, it used to be snow-covered. As I watched, the snow melted off the trees and the roofs and the lawns. The white steeple on a church turned brown and started to smolder. Little plumes of smoke, like birthday candles, were popping up all over the town. Trees and rooftops were catching fire.

"Okay... maybe it wasn't such a good idea for you to drive," Travis said.

"Pull up!" Percy yelled.

There was a wild light in Thalia's eyes. She yanked back on the wheel, but I held on this time like my life depended on it. As we zoomed up, I could see through the back window that the fires in the town were being snuffed out by the sudden blast of cold.

"There!" Apollo pointed. "Long Island, dead ahead. Let's slow down, dear. 'Dead' is only an expression."

Thalia was thundering toward the coastline of northern Long Island. There was Camp Half-Blood: the valley, the woods, the beach. I could see the dining pavilion and cabins and the amphitheater.

"I'm under control," Thalia muttered. "I'm under control."

We were only a few hundred yards away now.

"Brake," Apollo said.

"I can do this."

"BRAKE!"

Thalia slammed her foot on the brake, and the sun bus pitched forward at a forty-five-degree angle, slamming into the Camp Half-Blood canoe lake with a huge FLOOOOOOSH! Steam billowed up, sending several frightened naiads scrambling out of the water with half-woven wicker baskets.

"So that's where all the steam came from," Connor said. "Man... I wish we could have seen that."

The bus bobbed to the surface, along with a couple of capsized, half-melted canoes.

"Well," said Apollo with a brave smile. "You were right, my dear. You had everything under control! Let's go see if we boiled anyone important, shall we?"


End file.
